Talking about femme fatale it is impossible not to think of Marlene Dietrich. With her incredible talent and sensual voice, she was one of the icons of cinema of the last century loved by audiences and critics alike.
Who was Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene Dietrich simply known as Marlene Dietrich (Schöneberg, December 27, 1901 – Paris, May 6, 1992), was a German actress.
He grew up in a district of present-day Berlin with his military officer father and mother. His is held there academic path which includes the study of French and English but also of musical instruments like the violin and the piano. Due to problems related to problems with one finger of her hand, she is forced to abandon the two instruments and he then devotes himself to singing in the Berlin Academy.
It approaches the world of theater shortly after the age of twenty and she also started working with some directors who made her get small parts in some films. The first major cinematographic part, however, arrives in 1929 with “Die Frau, nach der man sich sehnt”. He begins to get noticed in the cinema scene though with “The blue angel”, the first sound film of German cinema.
Marlene Dietrich and Hollywood success
Not even the time to release the film and Paramount has already contacted Marlene to offer her a six-year contract where the actress asks to include among the various clauses to be able to choose the directors to collaborate with. The request arises from the desire to keep the partnership with Sternberg, director of the film with which he achieved great success.
Once ad Hollywood has the opportunity to get in touch with many compatriots who fled from Nazism including the great Fritz Lang. He immediately becomes a star and the system decides to exploit his singing skills to make them overcome the success of the then diva Greta Garbo of MGM. The first film shot in the new country is titled “Morocco” and allows her to get well two Academy Award nominations for Best Actress. Among her many successful projects we also remember “Shanghai Express”, “The Song of Songs” or “The Empress Catherine” where she is remembered by all as an actress with great determination and professionalism.
The slow decline of Marlene Dietrich
Over the years the actress becomes more and more famous and above all more and more rich, becoming one of the wealthiest people in the whole country. It also undertakes various tours for the United States collaborating with the Americans during the war.
With the beginning of the 1950s, however, his career saw a setback and Dietrich was forced to reinvent himself by carrying around musical performances accompanied by improvised monologues. Despite the great consensus obtained by this project, there are few great films that remember these years: “Witness for the accusation”, “Infernale Quinlan” by Orson Welles and “Winners and vanquished” with which he obtained a David di Donatello.
However, a number of health problems lead her to withdraw until after eight years of life spent almost entirely in bed, he passes away in sleep due to a heart attack. Despite the official version, his secretary later stated that it was suicide, thus leaving the story unclear.